Circus workshop in Paramus brings out the performer in 70 beginners

PARAMUS — Esther Marks and her sister, Lilli Baumzweig, aren’t exactly ready for the Big Top yet, but they did have a blast brushing up on their juggling and tightrope skills at a circus workshop on Sunday.

“That’s the one I really wanted to try,” said Marks of juggling.

Marks of Paramus was so thrilled at the experience she said she’ll recommend it to her daughter, Nikki Marks, who teaches special education children at The Friendship Circle in Paramus.

And sister Lilli? “She did well, too,” said Marks, a member of the Sisterhood at the Jewish Community Center of Paramus, which sponsored the event.

Marks, 48, and her sister were among 70 people who turned out to try their hand -- and feet -- at juggling, tightrope walking and trapeze flying.

None of the participants is expected to be recruited by Ringling Bros. anytime soon. “It’s a way of recreation activity for kids who don’t necessarily want to go the competitive sports route,” said Sharyn Brandman, 44, who brought her young staff from Circus Place to the center and thrilled the crowd, ranging in ages from 6 to 80 years old.

Circus Place, which opened in Hillsborough in 2011, is the first circus arts training facility in New Jersey, Brandman said.

Lest anyone think circus skills are a dying art, Brandman noted that there are 300 circus schools throughout the country.

And while the number of traveling circuses may have dwindled over the years, circuses like Ringling Bros., The Big Apple Circus and Cirque du Soleil, which doesn’t feature animals and emphasizes music, costumes and acrobatics, are still going strong, Brandman said.

No one was shot out of a cannon on Sunday, but during the three-hour workshop, a 6-year-old did spin a plate and walk a tightrope. And an 80-year-old did get to juggle, spin a plate and balance a peacock feather.

Brandman said they start out “step by step. They don’t start by climbing up a rope and doing crazy things from the get-go.”

Marks said she enjoyed tightrope walking, noting that the rope was only 2 feet off the ground and a spotter was with her all the way.

“You go back and forth, 4 to 5-feet across,” Marks said. But the main event for Marks was the juggling. “I’m going to practice,” she said.

From left, Dina Stein of Ridgewood, Lilli Baumzweig of Paramus and her sister Esther Marks of Paramus juggling during a circus skills workshop experience Sunday at the Jewish Community Center in Paramus.